Racking systems for holding exterior panels such as solar panels are commercially available in numerous forms. Most common commercial systems hold 20 solar panels in arrays of solar panels that are typically 5×4, 4×5, 10×2, or 14×2 foot configurations.
Present systems generally fall into 2 categories for holding each solar panel in place. The first wherein the solar panels sit on top of structures and are attached to the structures using holes in the bottom of the solar panel frame mated to holes in the solar panel racking structure(s). Between 4 to 12 sets of fasteners (such as bolts, nuts, and washers) are used per panel to affix the solar panel to the racking structure. In the second category, solar panel frames along the edge of the solar panel are clamped between the top and bottom edges in a racking structure in 2 to 8 places on the solar panel. 1 or 2 sets of fasteners per clamp tighten both the solar panel and the racking structure adjacent to the solar panel.
The problem with present systems is that they require a tremendous amount of fasteners in the form of bolts, U-bolts, screws, washers, and nuts required to both assemble the racking structure and to hold the solar panels in place. A great deal of time is required in the assembly of each racking system and the affixing of solar panels to the racking system. Getting each system ‘square’ to accept the solar panels (which are manufactured “square”) has been shown to take many man-hours for some systems and installations.
Adjustability in these systems usually is in the form of multiple alignment holes but moving from one set of alignment holes to another on a heavy frame is practically impossible and so is not usually done in the field particularly once the solar panel is affixed to the racking system; and therefore proper squaring and height adjustment for alignment between adjacent racks is almost never done. Small variations in the size of the solar panel itself and mounting hole positions in the solar panel frame can also require significant time to recover from the variations.
Accordingly, what is needed is a racking system for holding solar panels and other similar panels in a fixed position and that can easily adjust to terrains which are not level and adapt to variations in solar panel size without different hardware and without significant effort. Adjustable channels should hold the solar panels in place and the entire assembly process should be completed without the need for traditional fasteners such as bolts, screws, washers, and nuts.